As the shelling by Russian-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine intensifies, civilians in the region have described terror and devastation.
Valentina Gordeyeva became aware that something was about to happen when the tops of adjacent fir trees began to tremble. However, when she fled to safety in a local shop, a piece of shrapnel penetrated the sensitive skin of her left hand, killing her instantly.
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"I was holding a bag when I felt pain, and then I saw blood running down my bag," the 65-year-old recalled, her thumb and wrist bandaged after becoming one of four civilians wounded in shelling reportedly carried out by Russian-backed separatists since Thursday. "I was holding a bag when I felt pain, and then I saw blood running down my bag," she said.
With her finger pointed to the location of the strike, which took place at a bus stop in Marinka, eastern Ukraine, she stated that the attack caused damage to a neighboring school as well.
Gordeyeva attributes her injury to Ukrainian artillery fire, which is consistent with a frequent storyline promoted by Russian official media.
As a result of the incident, Al Jazeera was unable to independently verify its source.
Its population of 10,000 people is located right on the front lines, with separatist territory only a few hundred yards away. In the Donbas area, it is located immediately west of Donetsk, which has declared itself the self-proclaimed capital of one of the two regions held by pro-Russian rebels in the region.
Many residents in this region have become accustomed to the fear of firearms and artillery after eight years of a conflict that has claimed the lives of more than 14,000 people. The majority of the city's structures bear the wounds of war, and it is unusual to see a building with unbroken roofs or windows.
However, as tensions with Russia have risen in recent days, the assaults have been more violent than they have been in years, affecting residential areas and even a kindergarten in one instance.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs said on Saturday that artillery bombardment has increased in intensity throughout the entire battle line.
Soldiers on the front lines in Mariupol, a port city in Ukraine's far eastern region, told Al Jazeera that they had experienced the worst shelling they had ever encountered on Friday night, and they shared terrifying audio recordings of explosions with the news organization.
Two Ukrainian troops were killed and four more were injured on Saturday, according to reports.
It was in the late afternoon when Al Jazeera arrived in Marinka that the booms of ongoing shelling could be heard nearby.
As a result of the escalation, Western countries are concerned that Ukraine is now on the verge of a full-scale conflict, which it has been warning about for weeks.
Russia has accused Ukraine of bombarding its territory and of committing "genocide" against rebels in eastern Ukraine. Separatist leaders have subsequently called for a mass evacuation of people to Russia, as well as a complete military mobilization on their side of the border.
Officials from the United States and Ukraine claim that the assaults were manufactured as a pretext for a Russian invasion.
Despite ominous warnings from the Western media, many Ukrainians have maintained their composure in the face of Russia's growing danger to their country.
As the number of ceasefire violations increases, the climate is beginning to shift, and some people are seeking safety in places that are further away from the front lines.
SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES
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